Though known as Donkey Kong, he is actually a descendant of the original Donkey Kong, and successor after he later retired after his numerous defeats at hands of Mario.

The games originally described Donkey Kong as Cranky's grandson. Donkey Kong 64 (except for the Japanese version of the game) changed this to being his son, making their specific relationship uncertain until Donkey Kong Country Returns, where Cranky Kong was confirmed to be Donkey Kong's grandfather.

The character Donkey Kong first appeared in the game of the same name, where he acted as the main antagonist; however, sometime after his defeat, he retired (as mentioned above) and eventually let his age get to him and took on the name Cranky Kong.

The current Donkey Kong, designed by Rare, is a carefree simian who spends his days collecting Bananas and spending time with his friends and family, particularly his nephew and best friend, Diddy Kong. Donkey Kong is very protective of his island and his Banana Hoard, and because of this, he is always ready to protect them from those who would attempt to steal or do harm to either. The original Donkey Kong character design was created by Shigeru Miyamoto for the Donkey Kong arcade game. As seen in the Mario Vs Donkey Kong Series, Donkey Kong always seems to be after Pauline as he has an unrequited crush on her.

Contents

Biography

Joining the Yoshi team

When Donkey Kong was a baby, he was kidnapped from his treetop home by Kamek and his evil Toady army during their massive kidnapping spree. However, Donkey Kong met the Yoshis and greatly helped them in their quest to defeat the Koopa Troop. When riding on a Yoshi’s back, Donkey Kong helped them perform many special moves, such as the vine climb and shoulder charge. This is the current Donkey Kong and was strong like his adult self.

Monkey Love

The Original Donkey Kong with Pauline.

Cranky Kong (Donkey Kong)'s first appearance (un-chronologically) was in the Arcade game of the same name, where he was the main villain. In the game, Donkey Kong made off with Mario's (at the time) girlfriend, Pauline and carried her to the top of a high construction site. He was pursued by Mario and attacked him by throwing Barrels and creating living Fireballs. He was eventually pursued to the top of the construction site, where Mario caused the bars supporting him to crash, sending him to the ground. However, this is Cranky Kong going by the name of Donkey Kong.

Donkey Kong tried to kidnap Pauline yet again in the Game Boy game, Donkey Kong '94; this time, accompanied by his son, Donkey Kong Jr.. Donkey Kong's tactics in this game remained virtually the same: he attacked mainly by throwing a variety of objects at the hero.

It is still speculated exactly why Donkey Kong tried to kidnap Pauline: while some sources say that he took her in revenge against Mario (who had abused him) others (perhaps trying to show Mario in a more favorable light) say that Donkey Kong fell in love with the damsel-in-distress.

The first level in Donkey Kong, 25M

Mario's revenge

Donkey Kong took the role of damsel-in-distress during Donkey Kong Jr.. In this game, Mario actually kidnapped Donkey Kong perhaps to keep him from from kidnapping Pauline and stood guard next to his cage with a whip. In the end Donkey Kong Jr. arrived and defeated Mario to free Donkey Kong.

Battle for the Greenhouse

Stanley the Bugman attacking Donkey Kong.

In Donkey Kong 3, Donkey Kong once again a main villain, although this time he did not fight Mario, who had gone on to star in his own series (Donkey Kong would not meet with Mario again until much later.).

In this game, Donkey Kong has gone on a rampage inside a greenhouse and a local exterminator called Stanley was called in to defeat him (along with other bugs destroying plants in the greenhouse). Donkey Kong would use a system of ropes to lower himself to the greenhouse floor. When he reaches the floor, the game ends and Donkey Kong is able to destroy the rest of the greenhouse. After Stanley sprays Donkey Kong with insecticide three times to keep him off the greenhouse floor, he runs away.

A Brief Disappearance

Because Donkey Kong 3 was notably less popular, Donkey Kong, (along with some other characters from the Arcade games) were not seen for a while. Donkey Kong did appear as a sort of host for the game Donkey Kong Jr. Math, where he gave the player math signs so that they would know which operation to perform. He also appeared in some re-makes-+ and made small cameos, but had no large roles.

Donkey Kong Today

Donkey Kong is, as we know right now, a both agile and strong ape, capable of defending the island.

After the battles between Donkey Kong and Mario played out, Donkey Kong grew old, now being called Cranky Kong. His grandson took on the name. Life became much calmer. During this time, Donkey Kong forged lasting friendships with many of the Kongs, including his eager nephew and pal, Diddy Kong, his pro surfer pal (possible brother), Funky Kong, and his current girlfriend Candy Kong. He eventually moved out of Cranky's house to start living with Diddy, and began his reign over the jungle. Much of the monkey’s time was spent collecting Bananas to add to his Banana Hoard, and he lived a relatively laid back and carefree lifestyle as compared to his original appearance.

However, a band of Kremlings known as the Kremling Krew formed during this time. Their acts of violence and thievery put them at odds with Donkey Kong constantly, forcing him to guard his Banana Hoard every night.

Reclaiming the Banana Hoard

One night, Diddy Kong offered to guard the Banana Hoard for a night so Donkey Kong could sleep. However, during the night, several Kremlings attacked and overpowered the young Kong and stole the entire stash.

On a stormy night, the Kremling Krew arrived at Donkey Kong Island and stole the Banana Hoard. When Diddy attempted to guard it, a Krusha trapped him in a barrel. The events enraged Donkey Kong upon his return to the Hoard, and he set out to reclaim his stash and rescue Diddy. DK rescued Diddy from his barrel prison along the way, theFile:Kongs banana hoard.jpg two Kongs slowly defeated the enormous Kremling forces as they traveled throughout Donkey Kong Island with the aid of Candy Kong, Funky Kong, and Cranky Kong.

Eventually, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong found King K. Rool, the leader of the Kremlings. After defeating the slightly deranged king, the Kongs reclaimed the Banana Hoard and returned home.

Cranky’s Bet

After returning Home, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong told Cranky about their adventure. Cranky, though, was jealous. Cranky believed that video games had become easier the more technology progressed. Therefore, he argued, Donkey Kong would not be able to defeat K. Rool had the events been chronicled on an 8-bit system instead of the 16-bit Super Nintendo. Cranky challenged Donkey Kong to defeat King K. Rool on the Game Boy.

After Donkey Kong agreed, Cranky Kong contacted K. Rool and arranged for the adventure to be repeated. Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong defeated King K. Rool and the Kremlings again, made Cranky eat his words, and proved that they were heroes.

Kidnapped by King K. Rool

After his two long adventures, Donkey Kong decided to rest on the beach. One day, Cranky complained Donkey Kong wasn't doing anything, but resting on a beach and he was supposed to be a star. But Donkey said he is a hero and King K. Rool was gone forever. After Cranky left and nobody was insight, the Flying Krock appears over the beach. DK was kidnapped by the Kremiling Krew, who tied him up(for whole story) and smash the chair while leaving a note. The leader was Kaptian K. Rool, a alter ego of King K. Rool, who said if the other Kongs wanted DK back, they had to give up DK's Banana Hoard. Diddy Kong refused due to the fact how DK would feel and he and Dixie Kong travel to the Kremiling Krew's hideout and home, Crocodile Isles.

When Diddy and Dixie get into the Flying Krock, they see DK being tortured by Kaptian K. Rool, who battles them when they arrive. DK appears every time and gives the two Kongs a DK Barrel to release Diddy or Dixie. After K. Rool is about to blast Diddy and Dixie off the ship, DK breaks free of the ropes at the last minute and gives the nasty caption a powerful uppercut into the sea where he is chopped by sharks.

After Diddy and Dixie defeat Kaptian K. Rool for the third and final time. He, Diddy, and Dixie watch Crocodile Isles sink into the ocean. But they see a ship and hear an omnouis laugh, knowing that K. Rool survived.

Lured into a Trap

Having brought Crocodile Isle back to the surface, the Kremlings lured Donkey Kong there by using K. Rool as bait. While there, he was captured. Diddy and Dixie Kong saved Donkey Kong from the Kremlings, defeated K. Rool and sunk the island again.

Kidnapped by KAOS

One day, Donkey Kong decided to take his friend Diddy Kong on a fishing trip in the Northern Kremisphere. While there, they were overpowered and captured by the Kremlings, who claimed to now be ruled by an unusual mechanical being named KAOS. Back home, Dixie Kong grew suspicious when the Kongs did not return. She and her cousin, Kiddy Kong, set out to investigate, eventually discovering that Baron K. Roolenstein, another alter ego of King K. Rool, was behind the entire plot. Defeating him, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong were released. When Cranky criticizes Dixie and Kiddy, DK and Diddy walk over to him and beat him up.

Race to the Lost World

Shortly after being rescued, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong heard of a contest to discover the Lost World of the Northern Kremisphere. Once there, they set out to find the special area. Under their noses, the Kremlings began anew the KAOS plot. However, Dixie and Kiddie, who also entered the contest, were able to defeat them.

Blast-O-Matic

His plots to kidnap Donkey Kong continuously coming short, King K. Rool ditched all traces of pretense and developed a machine, the Blast-O-Matic, capable of completely destroying Donkey Kong Isle. However, due to the incompetence of his underlings, K. Rool's Ship crashed into rocks offshore and delayed the blast. Squawks, a friend of Donkey Kong, witnessed these events and reported to DK. Donkey Kong discovered that all 201 of his Golden Bananas had been stolen and four of his friends kidnapped. Diddy Kong, Lanky Kong, Tiny Kong, and Chunky Kong were locked behind cages throughout the island.

Donkey Kong discovered a floating isle attached to the main mechanical island. Inside, K. Lumsy, an enormous, disobedient Kremling, had been locked up for not destroying the island. When Donkey Kong promised to get him out of the cage, K. Lumsy jumped for joy, opening up a pathway to Jungle Japes. Once there, Donkey Kong found Diddy Kong and freed him. Many other friendly faces were found among the Kremling armies, including Funky Kong, Cranky Kong, Snide, Troff, and Scoff. In a later area, Candy Kong also joined the fight. One of her gifts to Donkey Kong was a set of Bongos, which affected Donkey Kong's later life.

As Donkey Kong freed his buddies, they in turn helped him find his Golden Bananas and the keys to K. Lumsy’s cage. Eventually, the team was able to take on K. Rool in a boxing match. After his defeat, K. Rool fled the island.

Donkey Kong's special ability in this game is Strong Kong. In order to use it, he must enter a special barrel with his face on it. He will then be surrounded by sparkling lights and is immune to damage and can walk on quicksand and lava. The player can return to normal by pressing the Z button and the left C Button. Donkey Kong is the only one who can pull levers. He uses the Coconut Shooter as his shooter. (It shoots coconuts, as the name implies) His instrument is the Bongos.

One peaceful day on Donkey Kong Island, the banana hoard was stolen by the Tiki Tak Tribe, Diddy goes to check and realizes that the hoard is gone and gives chase. DK notices and is furious. Then, a tiki named Kalimba aims to posses DK. However, DK is immune to the music, since he is too smart for the spell to work on him(Diddy Kong is also immune too). After pummeling Kalimba, DK set out to defeat the Tikis. DK frees Diddy from a DK Barrel. The apes get some help from Cranky, who sells them items, Wiz Pig, who gives them checkpoints, Rambi, who bashs spikes and boulders, and Squawks, who guides them to puzzele pieces.

DK and Diddy come across Mugly, who is eating bananas. Kalimba, who is angry with Donkey for kicking him out of DK's treehouse, possess Mugly to destroy the apes. DK defeats Mugly and hits Kalimba, and heads to the Beach.

After riding on whales, progressing through cannons, storms, and tidal waves, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong see Caption Greenbeard and his Skurvy Crew enjoying some bananas. However, they also see the Maraca Triplets, who posses the pirates to destroy DK. DK defeats the pirates and the Maraca Triplets and advances to the Ruins.

After going through a crumbling temple, DK and Diddy come across a giant egg. A Tiki named Gong appears and drops the egg into a cauldron and possess a bird named Stu. After throwing bombs at the bird and breaking the cauldron, Stu is revealed to be naked(which makes Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong cover their eyes). Gong appears dazed and is punched out of the ruins. DK and Diddy explore the Caves.

After riding in mine carts and rocket barrels, DK and Diddy see mole guards filling minecarts with bananas. Banjo sees the two apes, starts the train, and possess Mole Miner Max. After defeating the other mole guards, Donkey and Diddy precede to beat up Mole Miner Max, and punch Banjo out of the caves. The apes resurface and go to the Forest.

DK and Diddy find the Tikis on circular platforms and a Mangoruby resting. As it awakens, Panflute decides to use the beast to destroy DK and Diddy. After destroying it's segments, the Mangoruby is knocked out. Panflute is delivered series of punches by DK. DK and Diddy go to the Cliffs.

After making it past tar pits, skeletons, boulders, and crumbling canyons, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong come face to face with Thugly who is eating bananas. A Tiki named Xylophone appears in a Tiki Airship and possess Thugly. After using the same tactics to defeat Mugly along with new ones, Thugly is out cold while Xylophone appears dazed. Xylophone is delivered a punch. DK and Diddy explore the Factory. After progressing through smoke, smashers, mechanical enemies, and switches, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong see why the Tikis took their Hoard, was to make more Tikis. They encounter Colonel Pluck, who is smashing bananas to make new Tikis using the Stompybot 3000. Accordian appears and takes control of Colonel Pluck and tries to smash the two apes. Destroying Stompybot 3000 and defeating Colonel Pluck, Accordian is punched out of the Factory. DK and Diddy shut down the factory. The two apes progress to the final world, the Volcano.

After making their way through the molton lava, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong reach the final battle. They ride a rocket barrel to the top of the Tikis's Lair. After awakening from their crash, they see DK's missing banana hoard. Before celebrating, Kalimba, the Maraca Triplets, Gong, Banjo, Panflute, Xylophone, and Accordian appear from behind the hoard. Then, Tiki Tong appears. The Tiki intruments load all of the bananas into Tiki Tong. He mixes the bananas and vomits all over the Tikis, DK and Diddy stare in confusion. Then, the Tikis turn into hands for Tiki Tong. DK, along with Diddy are ready to take the giant Tiki. After their tough battle, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong are launched into space and are about to fall on the Moon. DK gets an idea to defeat the Tikis once and for all. By punching the Moon, Tiki Tongs Lair is sealed back into the volcano and all the bananas are released. DK and Diddy celebrate.

After finding eight rare orbs, DK and Diddy visit the Golden Temple where they find a Golden Banana which warps them to to a dream-like dimension(though on 3ds it takes them to the clouds which have eight levels

Beginning His Bongo Career

Donkey Kong's artwork in the Donkey Konga series.

While Donkey Kong had previously used Bongos as an offensive weapon, his fascination with the instrument truly began in Donkey Konga when he discovered a magical set of Bongos on a beach. Once Cranky Kong realized his grandson’s potential for being a professional, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong set out to become famous. On their travels, they revisited many locales and played popular songs through cooperative performances and musical face-offs.

Obsession Leads to Theft

Donkey Kong stealing the Mini Mario toys.

After enjoying the life of a traveling musician, Donkey Kong returned home. Once there, he saw a television commercial for the new Mini Mario toys. Infatuated with the new fad, he rushed to the nearest toy store, only to find that other ravenous fans of the products had bought every last one. In frustration, Donkey Kong succumbed to his violent nature and broke into the Mario Toy Company where he made off with a sack full of Mini Marios. However, Mario was hot on his trail, and while in pursuit, Mario used the toys dropped by the ape as allies. Eventually, Mario caught Donkey Kong and destroyed his robot, but rather than make the same mistake as was made with Cranky Kong, Mario forgave his old friend and they continued their lives.

Second Tour

When Dixie Kong joined Donkey and Diddy for a practice session, the trio realized their potential for musical chemistry. Shortly after, they set out on another tour which was very similar to Donkey and Diddy Kong's first one. However, they changed up their song list to include current popular songs of the time.

The Banana Kingdom and Beyond

While it was never clear what compelled Donkey Kong to travel to the Banana Kingdom and its sister lands, the ape set out on a mission to take down the possessed Dread Kong who ruled it. Upon doing so, he set out to the other nearby kingdoms. Utilizing his great strength, Donkey Kong hoofed it alone through sixteen such kingdoms, eventually conquering the evil Cactus King. After the fight, the other kings met Donkey Kong, now free of Cactus King’s curse. Presumably, Donkey Kong allowed them to resume their duties. Donkey Kong may not have had honorable intentions for entering the kingdoms, but rather may have been searching for more Bananas and an improved reputation.

The Search for the Festival's Medals

Donkey Kong had more work to do during DK: King of Swing. It was time for the annual Jungle Jam, a festival for the Kongs. However King. K. Rool returns and steals all of the medals needed to have the festival. Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong go after him to get their tokens back. In the end, they defeat K. Rool, and the festival is celebrated.

☀[[File:DKSwingArt.png|thumbnail|Donkey Kong as he appears in King of Swing.]]

Fighting Again

In the sequel, Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis, he now works in the Mario Toy Company. Donkey Kong then kidnaps Pauline, the V.I.P. guest, when she chooses Mario's Mini-Mario toy over his Mini-Donkey Kong toy. It is likely that he made the Mini-Donkey Kong toys, and perhaps he created the monkey-like enemies that appear in the game.

Barrel Blasting

DK and his friends then decided to go on a new adventure, this time a race with a lot of Kremlings and K. Rool. He and his friends and foes alike compete in the Jungle Grand Prix in Donkey Kong Barrel Blast, where everyone rides on jet powered bongos. His rival in this game is a Kritter, and his stats are all average.

Stats

Boost: ☆☆☆

Speed: ☆☆☆

Agility: ☆☆☆

Saving the Universe from a Enemy

In DK: Jungle Climber, Donkey Kong, along with Diddy, Dixie, Cranky, Wrinkly, Funky, and Candy, were resting on Sun Sun beach on Sun Sun Island, when Diddy noticed a giant Banana. Donkey Kong, Diddy, and Cranky went up to the top to find a Banana Spaceship. Donkey Kong fought this spaceship, and found Xananab. They found out that K. Rool and the Kremlings escaped with his five Crystal Bananas and he needs them back. Donkey Kong and friends agree, and the four traveled through the islands, going through wormholes and other lands, such as Glass Labyrinth, Toybox, and Veggie Patch. At the end of each island, Donkey Kong fought one of K. Rool's assistant Kremlings, and eventually when Donkey Kong defeated the third Kremling, K. Rool fled to the King Kruiser IV. Donkey Kong chased them, and eventually reached K. Rool's spaceship. There, they defeated the fourth Kremling, K. Rool went through a wormhole. Donkey Kong followed, and they landed on Xananab's homeplanet. There they fought K. Rool, which was a tough battle. Eventually, though, the DK Crew once again won, and Donkey Kong, Diddy, and Cranky got to eat all the bananas they could eat and continued their tropical vacation.

Partaking in Sports

Donkey Kong has appeared (sometimes along with his nephew, Diddy) in all of the Mario Sports series, most notably Mario Kart. His father appeared in Super Mario Kart.

Golf

Donkey Kong, playing golf.

In NES Open Tournament Golf, a monkey looking exactly like Donkey Kong, except for the fact that it was wearing white clothes, appeared. It is presumed this monkey is Donkey Kong. Donkey Kong, tells the player, how much money he or she has. In later golf games, he would appear as a playable character. He has since appeared in every Tennis event held in the Mario Universe.

Tennis

He is also playable in all of the golf, tennis and other sports titles. He is usually portrayed as a slow but powerful character. He often takes unconventional approaches to certain sports, like swinging a Golf Club one-handed or using a Boxing Glove for a Baseball Bat. The most interesting of these is the fact that he regularly uses his hands when playing soccer, to the point of holding the ball in one hand as he prepares to punch it with the other.

Basketball

Donkey Kong dunking a ball.

Donkey Kong has appeared in the one time game, Mario Hoops 3-on-3, as a playable character along with Dixie Kong and Diddy Kong. There he is ranked in the Powerful class because of his low speed and high stealing power. He also had his own court, DK Cruiser. His special shot is the Konga Dunk, in which he starts dribbling the ball in a rough M shape, with the ball glowing yellow. He tosses the ball straight up and slams his hands on the ground three times. He will then catch the ball and shoot it. Donkey Kong will catch the ball in midair, do a flip, and dunk the ball in the basket while accompanied by a small yellow explosion.

If performed outside the 3-point line, he will hurl the ball with its yellow trail toward the basket for a teammate to make the dunk. The yellow explosion appears afterward.

Soccer

Donkey Kong is also playable in the Mario Striker series. He is a captain in Super Mario Strikers, his team number is 55, his captain type is aggressive, and his special strike is the Power Fist Strike. After charging, the screen is surrounded by a green and yellow lightnings (or sprites) halo, which Donkey Kong makes an electrical strike to the goalkeeper. His kicking style is punching the ball with anger.

Donkey Kong

Legend: Donkey Kong's talent can slip even the best players.

Entrance Donkey Kong begins to pound his chest and the ground trying to intimidate his opponent.

Team Number: 55

Captain Type: Aggressive

Super Strike: Power Fist Strike

Donkey Kong is again a playable team Captain in Mario Strikers Charged. Here, he takes on the appearance of everyone else, with a new suit design. His Super Ability is the Thunder Wham, in which he will slam the ground, and send a large shock wave across the area. It has a huge radius, and can blast away many players, even if they aren't close to Donkey Kong. It also makes the field tilt for a few seconds. Donkey Kong can then proceed to do a Mega Strike. A similar move is Daisy's Crystal Smash! move, except Thunder Wham! has a larger radius and takes longer to perform. Thunder Wham! was seen briefly in the intro movie.

Donkey Kong

Character Type: Power

Mega Strike: Once in the air, he gathers electricity in his arms and claps the ball, hurling it towards the goalie.

Super Ability: Thunder Wham!

Deke: DK pounds his chest, creating small soundwaves around him that knock out nearby opponents.

Uniform: DK wears golden armor with green and red accents.

Alt. Uniform: Purple

Team Emblem: Signature “Donkey Kong” emblem with a lightning bolt in the middle.

Team Number: 55

Away Entrance: Donkey Kong pounds his chest, smashes a fist into the ground and then makes gorilla sounds.

Home Entrance: Falling from the sky, DK shakes the field upon impact and stares down his opponent while baring his teeth.

Baseball

Donkey Kong, hitting the ball with his fist.

Donkey Kong is in the Mario Baseball Series, including Mario Superstar Baseball, and Mario Super Sluggers. His special ball is the Banana Ball. His bio states: "A gorilla known for raw power, Donkey Kong lives a carefree jungle life... unless someone messes with his bananas, in which case he just loses it. His ancestor, Cranky Kong (the original Donkey Kong) wore no necktie. His talents lead in beating on primate foes and kart-racing. Fear his Banana Ball."

Kart Racing

Donkey Kong was playable in all of the Mario Kart games except Super Mario Kart (this game instead had Donkey Kong Jr. as a playable character). He also appeared in Mario Kart 64 as a heavyweight second only to Bowser. The same applies in Mario Kart Super Circuit.

Boxing

Donkey Kong was a secret boss in Punch-Out!! for Wii. Earned by beating at least one opponent in Little Mac's last stand mode. He likes to taunt a lot in this game, and will counter punch if you attack while taunting.

Partying

He was playable in all of the Mario Party games, up until Mario Party 5, here, he leaves and starts hosting his own space. He is basically the opposite of Bowser, since when a character lands on his space, something good happens. In Mario Party 6 he helps the player during the day. He also is the third party board in Mario Party DS. Poor DK has been turned to stone by a Dry Bones while he and Diddy were running to Bowser's Castle in search of food. The player had to win the game and beat the Dry Bones to free Donkey Kong. The ape then runs away to the castle. At the end, he is seen with Diddy enjoying the meals Bowser had prepared as traps for the 8 "partiers". This marks his second time appearing in a game developed by a company other than Nintendo. Donkey kong can be seen in some minigames (Which are DK) and stores, but he is a NPC (Non-Playable Character).

Super Smash Bros. Games

Donkey Kong is playable in all of the Super Smash Bros. games. In Super Smash Bros. he is a default character. In one-player mode, the player must fight Giant Donkey Kong. This is the only fight where the player is given two partners to help him, instead of one. Giant DK can stand about 350 damage before being knocked off the stage.

DK was also a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Once again, he was a default character. In the new one-player mode Adventure, the player must first fight two Tiny Donkey Kongs, and then fight Giant Donkey Kong at Jungle Japes. By picking up a Super Mushroom, Donkey Kong can transform into Giant Donkey Kong for a few moments. Donkey Kong is always one of the strongest characters in the game. When he picks up a character, he also has the power to carry them a short distance, something no other characters can do.

Donkey Kong reappears as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. His move are all the same from Melee and his Final Smash is the Konga Beat, probably inspired from the game Donkey Konga and Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat. Diddy Kong is a playable character too. Also an 8-bit Donkey Kong called the 8-bit Donkey Kong appears on the 75M stage (which is based on the 3rd level in the original Donkey Kong).

Donkey Kong returns once again as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U. His moves are mostly the same as in previous games, but with a few changes. His dash attack was changed to the roll attack from Donkey Kong Country, his down special attack can now be performed in the air (which is a meteor smash), and his up special attack has a new animation and angle on the ground. His cargo down throw was also changed. DK's moves in general have smoother animations compared to Brawl.

Special Moves

Standard (B)- Giant Punch: Donkey Kong will swing his arms back and forth, getting faster with each swing. The more time the player spends winding up DK's arm, the stronger the punch will be. Donkey Kong can walk with his punch loaded. However, when the B button is pressed again, the move will be released, sending a strong punch to whoever is in front of Donkey Kong.

Side (B →)- Headbutt: When executed, Donkey Kong will swing his head forward dealing minor damage to enemies. This move will also plow a character into the ground. The foe will be unable to move once caught, leaving him open for a barrage. The grounded player can get up by rotating the Control Stick (or by just waiting). A good strategy is to plow the foe in the ground with Head butt, and then using a fully charged Giant punch.

Up (B ↑)- Spinning Kong: As the name suggests, Donkey Kong is spinning in this attack. He can use this when falling off a ledge, or use it to attack players. As a lot of Donkey Kong's moves take a while to use, and usually hit one player, Spinning Kong can be used as a last minute resort when Donkey Kong is surrounded by foes.

Down (B ↓)- Hand Slap: Originating from Donkey Kong Country, Donkey Kong will slap the ground, severely damaging any characters near him. The attack is very useful in the event of when Donkey Kong is surrounded by opponents. However, the attack takes a while to get put into action, but once used, all the player must do, is hold control stick down and continuously tap the B Button. Donkey Kong will keep using the attack over-and-over, and will not stop until the player stops tapping B, or an opponent hits him. Hand Slap is very useful to use in the Multi-Man Melee challenges. However, the move could not be executed in mid-air until Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U (but only for a short time).

Final Smash- Konga Beat: Donkey Kong will put out two Bongos and start jamming. The player can make the attack stronger by pressing the buttons with each beat of the song. Donkey Kong is invincible during the move. Unfortunately he is also unable to move, making the move very risky to use on scrolling stages that requires the player to keep on moving (ironically this is a requirement in one of Donkey Kong's very own stages in Brawl, Rumble Falls).

Solid Snake Codec Conversation about Donkey Kong

Snake: Otacon, there's a gorilla wearing a tie here. He's huge.

Otacon: That's Donkey Kong. As you can tell, he's got strength to spare. He may be king of the jungle, but he lives in a house just like you or me. And he seems pretty smart—well, for an ape, anyway. The Donkey Kong who fought that epic battle with Mario was this guy's grandfather.

Snake: That was a long time ago. What about this Donkey Kong? Does he get along with Mario?

Otacon: Nope, they're still at it. Seems like they're always competing in something—kart racing, sports, you name it.

Snake: A chip off the old block...

Remark: They state that Cranky Kong is the original Donkey Kong. This phenomena probably has something to do with the mythical properties surrounding the Mushroom Kingdom.

Role in the Subspace Emissary

The Koopa Troop and Bowser steal Donkey Kong's Banana Hoard as a Hammer Bro. drives a car which contains all the Bananas of Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong watches him from a cliff. Hammer Bro. and the Goombas aboard the car spot Donkey Kong and shoot Bullet Bills at him. However, Diddy Kong comes out from a bush with his Peanut Popguns and he shoots the Bullet Bills. Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong then follow the Hammer Bro. to retrieve the Banana Hoard. After following him, they see Bowser with a strange type of gun called a Dark Cannon, revealing that he is working for the Subspace Army. When Bowser charged the cannon Donkey Kong charges his Giant Punch then launches Diddy to the sky and out of the way sacrificing himself and Bowser shoots him which turns him into a trophy. Later Diddy Kong, Fox McCloud and Falco Lombardi met up with a ship which was carrying Donkey Kong as a trophy, taken to a mysterious floating island. Falco then helps Diddy by following it with his Arwing and having the little Kong with him. He then drops him and Diddy gets on his Rocket Barrel and takes out his Popguns and shoots the ship. After seeing this Captain Falcon and Olimar decide to help him and jump to the ship where Diddy frees Donkey Kong then all four fight the Primids and other enemies.

The ship takes them inside a factory producing Subspace Bombs, and encounter various R.O.B.s that happen to live on the island. They later meet up with Pikachu and Samus Aran where they see the Ancient Minister and a whole lot of R.O.B.s. After Ganondorf controls the R.O.B.s into activating all of the Subspace Bombs, the Ancient Minister is shown to be R.O.B., the leader of all the lesser R.O.B.s who were forced to work for the Subspace Army. R.O.B. then fights with the others. When trying to escape Captain Falcon calls for his Falcon Flyer and tries to leave the cave when Meta-Ridley appears and they must fight him. After that they all meet up with the others.

Donkey Kong and the other heroes enter Subspace and meet Tabuu, who turns everyone into trophies with his Off Waves. However, King Dedede had anticipated this and created badges that revived certain fighters back into their original form. With his team consisting of Luigi and Ness, Dedede rescues Donkey Kong and most of the others. Although some of them were rescued by Kirby, they also recruit Bowser, Ganondorf, and Wario when they learned about Tabuu. At the end of the Great Maze, Sonic the Hedgehog shows up and helps weaken Tabuu's Off Waves so Donkey Kong and the others would be able to defeat him.

Profile Information from Super Smash Bros.

Donkey Kong and Mario started out as arch-rivals, but they've patched things up in recent years. These days Donkey Kong spends his time searching the jungle for bananas instead of kidnapping beautiful maidens. In the past few years, other members of the Kong family have cashed in on Donkey Kong's fame as well, including his favorite nephew, Diddy.

Trophy Information from Super Smash Bros. Melee

While he now prefers the laid-back jungle lifestyle to construction site mischief, Donkey Kong is often forced back into action by the Kremling Krew. The great ape is quite fast despite his burly physique, and he keeps his strength up with a steady diet of his favorite food: bananas. His one extravagance (and only piece of clothing) is a monogrammed necktie.

5

Donkey Kong [Smash](Adventure)

B: Giant PunchSmash B: Headbutt

Donkey Kong is a huge target in a fight, so he hates crowds. When he's in the fray, his Giant Punch deals serious damage to multiple opponents. The big ape's Headbutt hits so hard that it temporarily buries opponent's in the ground. Donkey Kong is a lot faster than he looks, and he's lethal in the hands of a master.

6

Donkey Kong [Smash](All-Star)

Up & B: Spinning KongDown & B: Hand Slap

Being the strongest simian around, Donkey Kong has the upper hand once he grabs an opponent. He can even lift his foe up and make him or her an unwilling traveling companion; if DK grabs you, shake your Control Stick as fast as you can to break his grip. His Spinning Kong covers more lateral distance than vertical, so use it quickly to recover.

Trophy Information from Super Smash Bros. Brawl

A carefree jungle dweller with the charisma of a natural leader. He keeps busy by foiling the plans of the Kremlings and their boss, King K. Rool. As his physique suggests, this ape is a powerhouse. He's got speed to match too, and his love for bananas is second to none. His famous necktie is adorned with his initials, DK.

4

Konga Beat

Donkey Kong about to go to town with some bongos! His performance is so magnificent and upbeat that it creates damage-inducing sound waves. Press the buttons in time to the music, and the sound waves may grow stronger. Donkey Kong's invulnerable when launching this attack, but he's also immobile, so be careful using it on scrolling stages.

Competing in the Winter Olympic Games

Donkey Kong appeared in Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter games and his main rival is Knuckles the Echidna.

Appearances in Other Media

Donkey Kong, along with Mario and Pauline appeared in several episodes of the Saturday Supercade. Here Donkey Kong was a gorilla who had escaped from the circus and was now traveling the across country, with Mario and Pauline on his tail. Donkey Kong Jr. was also featured in a few of Saturday Supercade's episodes. On the show DK Jr., along with his pal Bones traveled across the globe searching for Donkey Kong.

Donkey Kong appeared in the book Doors to Doom in a recreation of the original game (though Mario and Luigi were trying to reach the top to rescue Princess Peach instead of Pauline). Assuming the Mario Brothers successfully reach the top of the tower, Donkey Kong is ultimately sent plummeting out of sight when Peach jabs in the backside with her crown.

Donkey Kong made occasional appearances on Captain N: The Game Master. Here he was, more or less, a giant, bestial, monster. Oftentimes on the show Donkey Kong was manipulated by Mother Brain and her minions to do evil. Donkey Kong also appeared in the Captain N comics.

He is also the main character in the Club Nintendo comic "Donkey Kong Country", which tells the story of the game of the same name - together with Diddy Kong, he tries (and manages) to fetch the Banana Hoard back from King K. Rool.

During the events of the comic "Super Mario in Die Nacht des Grauens", published in the same magazine, he lives in a skyscraper in Brooklyn together with many other Nintendo characters. Due to a contract signed by Wario, the skyscraper is invaded by several monsters. One of them, Chuckie, invades the Kongs' room, while Donkey and Diddy are watching TV. They are terrified by the evil doll, but get rescued by Mario, Link and Kirby. Afterwards, however, Donkey claims that Diddy and him defeating the monsters would have taken only "half of the time".

He once again appears as the main character in "Donkey Kong in: Banana Day 24". The Kongs have to save the world from freezing, since a giant UFO is pulling the Earth away from the sun. Together with Diddy, Dixie, Kiddy and Cranky, Donkey enters a space shuttle and flies into space, in order to talk to the aliens. As it turns out, the reason for them pulling away the Earth is that they mistook the planet for a giant coconut. When the Kongs bring them some Bananas, they agree to return the Earth to its original position. In the comic, Donkey appears as the bravest of the Kongs, as he is the one to start talking to the aliens.

He is a playable character in the video game Skylanders: SuperChargers, alongside Bowser from the Mario series, and his interactive figure is also an Amiibo with a simple switch of the base. His character wasn't created at all by Nintendo but by Activison and his moves were modeled based off of the original games. Based from a Skylanders Comic, Donkey Kong and Bowser came out of a rift which took them to the Skylanders Universe. At the time in the game dimensional rifts were not stable because of Skylanders main antagonist, causing one rift to rip between a world of unknown origin.

Appearance

Donkey Kong's original concept.

Donkey Kong's design has changed slightly over the years. At first during the NES era, he was portrayed as a clumsy gorilla who kidnapped Pauline for unknown reasons, and was later imprisoned by Mario. At this time he was a regular brown primate with an oversized body.

However, on the Donkey Kong Country series for SNES, this Kong seemed to have been in fact the hero's grandfather, named Cranky Kong. Due to this confirmation, DK's original and actual first appearance was in Donkey Kong Country. His first chronological appearance was Yoshi's Island DS.

As a grown up, Donkey Kong has been portrayed as a large slightly clumsy ape who wears a red tie with his initials "DK" imprinted on yellow, and has kept this attire since, only changing his looks on certain games such as the Mario Strikers series, Punch Out!! cameo appearance (where he uses yellow sport plates and boxing gloves respectively) and Skylanders Supercharges where he wears a jump suit with his tie. In Yoshi's Island DS, he appeared wearing a red bib with yellow edges and his initials engraved on to it.

Donkey Kong's more modern concept.

Despite his looks, Donkey Kong has proven over the years that he is smarter than revealed at first, on the remake of Donkey Kong Country, he speaks with proper English, contrary to the original game where he seemed mute at all times. Most of his appearances in spin-offs of Mario games he seems more friendly such as in Mario Kart or Mario Party, the latest 8th title of the series he opposes Bowser by awarding the players with stars instead of taking them away like the Koopa King, in Donkey Kong 64 he was able to wield weapons and tools with ease.

Throughout the development of several titles Donkey Kong has changed his physical appearance slowly, at first he was shown savage, slow, and muscular, much like his grandfather, however, lately he has been shown as more agile, such as Donkey Kong Jungle Beat where he is faster in movement and more athletic able to perform backflips, aerial kicks and dodge at high speed. DK has remained the powerhouse in other games such as Mario & Sonic Olympic games and Super Smash Bros. Brawl where he is stated to be a "balanced" character. DK's size also seems to change slightly from game to game; for example, DK seems much larger compared to Diddy Kong in Donkey Kong Country Returns as compared with past titles, like the SNES Donkey Kong Country games.

Relations

Diddy Kong

Diddy Kong is Donkey Kong's nephew and "little buddy". Diddy Kong has went on countless adventures with his more popular friend and uncle, and has even rescued Donkey Kong a couple times. Diddy seems to have a more happy-go-lucky personality than his friend, which is probably due to his youthful age. The relationship between Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong seems to be similar to the relationship of Mario and Luigi, only the two Kongs are not brothers.

Cranky Kong

Cranky Kong is the current Donkey Kong's crabby and constantly rambling grandfather. He has usually found a way to help Donkey Kong out in his adventures, though it usually entails giving out advice. In Donkey Kong Country Returns, Cranky is said to be Donkey's grandfather, and says to have raised him.

Donkey Kong Jr.

Donkey Kong Jr., is the son of the original Donkey Kong, father of the current Donkey Kong. Donkey Kong Jr. saved his father from the clutches of Mario in Donkey Kong Jr. so Jr. supposedly has a good relationship with his son, as he is willing to play tennis with him in Mario Tennis 64.

Funky Kong

Funky Kong is a friend and ally of Donkey Kong, and has assisted him in many of his adventures. It is speculated that Funky Kong may actually be Donkey Kong's brother, due to their near-identical apperance (without his sunglasses and bandana, Funky Kong looks the exact same as Donkey Kong, only Funky has a lighter shade of fur).

Candy Kong

Candy Kong is the beautiful and extremely personified girlfriend of Donkey Kong. It is speculated that Donkey Kong would later marry Candy. In Donkey Kong Country, she blows a kiss at Donkey Kong when he comes to her Save Points, though she does do this with Diddy as well.

Mario

Donkey Kong and Mario had a bit of rivalry.Their rivalry has even taken a new course as witnessed in the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series. However, they appear to have a friendly rivalry that sometimes takes a new spin in the sports, kart-racing and party games. However in some games Donkey Kong and Mario have been good friends. Though Donkey Kong is large in size, he is still quite a bit younger than Mario.

Pauline

Pauline was kidnapped by Cranky Kong in the original Donkey Kong game and the current Donkey Kong in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2, and Mario had to rescue her. The relationship between Pauline and Donkey Kong is unknown.

Trivia

DK can be stubborn, whether guarding his hoard of bananas, battling Kremlings, or protecting his friends. Although he is a hero, he has flaws, such as greediness and stinginess with his bananas, and his bravery can border on recklessness. The animated series elaborated on his character, making him a bit egotistical, impatient, absent-minded at times, and giving him an enormous appetite for banana cream pies. When he isn't questing, he is usually slacking off with Diddy or dating Candy. He also has an affinity for nature, and is popular with non-primate animals across Congo Bongo Island.

Super Mario Strikers is the first game in which Donkey Kong has worn something other than a tie since Donkey Kong Country.

Donkey Kong's speech is changed throughout many games. During Donkey Kong Country, he spoke with good grammar and proper English. In Donkey Kong 64 he used improper grammar and broken English, and spoke in a third person view, for example saying "Donkey all confused....". In both games, he only has 2 lines, and speaks in the very beginning of the game. In all later games, Donkey Kong doesn't speak at all and just makes ape noises. However, in the Mario Party games released after Mario Party 4, he spoke with proper grammar, and all Mario Party games before that, he only made monkey noises.

A Monster Truck based on Donkey Kong appeared at Monster Jam 2007.

Donkey Kong, along with Birdo and a few others, were originally going to appear as playable characters in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, but were scrapped before the final product was finished for unknown reasons.

There has been some confusion over the years as to whether the current Donkey Kong is Donkey Kong Jr. or his son. Cranky Kong has been referred to as Donkey Kong's grandfather in the past, but Rare seems to have entirely reconnected this. Nintendo and Retro support the idea of Jr. and Donkey Kong being seperate characters hence the current Donkey Kong is Donkey Kong III, and Jr.'s son.